The Shadow
RICHMOND, Va. (VR) – Nearly 200 Virginia law enforcement agencies will conduct 705 individual saturation patrols and 86 sobriety checkpoints across the Commonwealth through the Labor Day weekend as part of Virginia’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over DUI enforcement and public education campaign.
Last year, there were 6,767 alcohol-related crashes on Virginia’s roadways, resulting in 318 deaths and 4,306 people injured. The number of people killed increased by 8.5% compared to 2023.
“Over last year’s Labor Day weekend in Virginia, ten people lost their lives in traffic crashes, with one-third of those deaths involving a driver who was drinking,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “In addition, over the same weekend last year, there were 95 alcohol-related crashes and 19 serious alcohol-related traffic injuries. These heartbreaking events are avoidable, and I encourage everyone to plan ahead, line up a safe ride home and do not drink and drive.”
The Commonwealth’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign has been reminding Virginians of the devastating consequences of impaired driving for 24 years. An increased enforcement period to stop drunk driving is taking place from August 13 through the Labor Day holiday on September 1, 2025.
“Alcohol-related crashes are preventable,” said Secretary of Transportation W. Sheppard Miller III. “One simple decision can either save a life or take a life, which is why I urge everyone to make the right decision and do not drink and drive over the upcoming holiday weekend.”
The Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign reminds Virginians to get a safe ride home after drinking or face arrest. The campaign uses public safety messages and high-visibility enforcement to keep impaired drivers off the road. The campaign is supported by new research from consumer research company GWI (Global Web Index), which this month conducted a survey of 1,000 Virginia drivers who are most likely to drive after drinking: 21 to 35-year-old males. Among other findings, the research showed that while nearly all (96.1%) of the 21- to 35-year-old male drivers surveyed in Virginia believe it is important to make a plan to get a safe ride home after drinking, only 69% frequently do.
“We’re working with law enforcement officers to help stop impaired drivers and save lives across the Commonwealth. Ahead of your Labor Day weekend plans, choose to plan for a safe and sober ride home before your festivities,” said DMV Commissioner Gerald Lackey, the Governor’s Highway Safety Representative. “You don’t want to make a choice that could potentially end your life or someone else’s.”
Since the start of the campaign in 2002, there has been notable progress in reducing drunk driving in Virginia. Alcohol-related traffic crashes have decreased by 39.9%, fatalities have decreased by 11.2% and injuries have been nearly halved (47.6%) (2001 vs. 2024, Virginia DMV). The joint effort between traffic safety and law enforcement helps to communicate a simple message that drinking and driving costs more than your drinks and to not pay for such “with your livelihood or, worse, your life.”
Virginia State Police troopers will work through the Labor Day holiday as part of Operation CARE – the Crash Awareness Reduction Effort. CARE is a nationwide, state-sponsored traffic safety program that aims to reduce traffic crashes, fatalities and injuries caused by impaired driving, speeding, and failing to use occupant restraints. Virginia State Police’s participation in the program will begin August 29 and run through September 1, 2025.
“With 181 law enforcement agencies participating throughout the Commonwealth, Virginians will see a significantly stepped-up effort by state and local law enforcement to identify and apprehend impaired drivers through the Labor Day holiday,” said Virginia State Police Superintendent Colonel Matthew D. Hanley.
Complementing the enforcement effort, the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign is deploying a research-based public awareness campaign entitled “What’s the Damage?” This campaign aims to deliver innovative and creative materials paired with impactful messaging which will be seen across Virginia reminding motorists of the costs of drunk driving and to plan a safe ride home before drinking. The campaign’s digital creative can be seen at WhatsTheDamage.org.
Virginia’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign is supported by a grant from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles to the Virginia-based nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP).
